SCOUT PACE A pace (or double-pace or passus) is a measure of distance used in Ancient Rome. It is the measure of a full stride from the position of the heel when it is raised from the ground to the point the same heel is set down again at the end of the step. Thus, a distance can be “paced off” by counting each time the same heel touches ground, or, in other words, every other step. In Rome, this unit was standardized as two gradūs or five Roman feet (about 1.48 metres or 58.1 English inches). There are 1000 passus in one mille, and a mille was sometimes referred to as a mille passus. The Byzantine pace or vema (βήμα [ˈvima]) was 2½ feet (pous) A pace in modern terminology is usually taken as being a single pace rather than a double pace. It has no formal definition but is taken as being around 30 inches COMPASS BEARING Bearings A directional compass is shown below. It is used to find a direction or bearing . The four main directions of a compass are known as cardinal points. They are north (N), east (E), south (S) and west (W). Sometimes, the half-cardinal points of north-east (NE), north-west (NW), south-east (SE) and south-west (SW) are shown on the compass. The above compass shows degree measurements from 0° to 360° in 10° intervals with: north representing 0° or 360° east representing 90° south representing 180° west representing 270° When using a directional compass, hold the compass so that the point marked north points directly away from you. Note that the magnetic needle always points to the north. Bearing The true bearing to a point is the angle measured in degrees in a clockwise direction from the north line. We will refer to the true bearing simply as the bearing. For example, the bearing of point P is 065º which is the number of degrees in the angle measured in a clockwise direction from the north line to the line joining the centre of the compass at O with the point P (i.e. OP). The bearing of point Q is 300º which is the number of degrees in the angle measured in a clockwise direction from the north line to the line joining the centre of the compass at O with the point Q (i.e. OQ). Note: The bearing of a point is the number of degrees in the angle measured in a clockwise direction from the north line to the line joining the centre of the compass with the point. A bearing is used to represent the direction of one point relative to another point. For example, the bearing of A from B is 065º. The bearing of B from A is 245º. Note: Three figures are used to give bearings. All bearings are measured in a horizontal plane. 16 POINTS OF A COMPASS Boxing the compass is the action of naming all thirty-two principal points of the compass in clockwise order. Navigational compass mariner‘s compass (Larger) # Compass point Abbreviation True Heading 1. North N 0.00° 2. North by east NbE 11.25° 3. North-northeast NNE 22.50° 4. Northeast by north NEbN 33.75° 5. Northeast NE 45.00° 6. Northeast by east NEbE 56.25° 7. East-northeast ENE 67.50° 8. East by north EbN 78.75° 9. East E 90.00° 10. East by south EbS 101.25° 11. East-southeast ESE 112.50° 12. Southeast by east SEbE 123.75° 13. Southeast SE 135.00° 14. Southeast by south SEbS 146.25° 15. South-southeast SSE 157.50° 16. South by east SbE 168.75° 17. South S 180.00° 18. South by west SbW 191.25° 19. South-southwest SSW 202.50° 20. Southwest by south SWbS 213.75° 21. Southwest SW 225.00° 22. Southwest by west SWbW 236.25° 23. West-southwest WSW 247.50° 24. West by south WbS 258.75° 25. West W 270.00° 26. West by north WbN 281.25° 27. West-northwest WNW 292.50° 28. Northwest by west NWbW 303.75° 29. Northwest NW 315.00° 30. Northwest by north NWbN 326.25° 31. North-northwest NNW 337.50° 32. North by west NbW 348.75° POINTS OF THE COMPASS Before the Magnetic Compass was discovered, early map makers would draw a small 16 pointed circle on the map, and place an “N” to point to North. These were the 16 Cardinal Points from which the winds were thought to blow. This drawing was called a “Wind Rose.” When the magnetic compass came along, it was usually set on top of the Wind Rose pattern in order to help face the nautical chart in the proper direction. The wind rose started to become known as a COMPASS ROSE. Since the 1100′s, compass bearings have been split into 16 different directions: North – North North East – North East – East North East – East East – East South East – South East – South South East – South South South West – South West – West South West – West West North West – North West – North North West – North This was all the accuracy a Mariner’s Compass had to offer then. By today’s standards, it was not very accurate. As spherical mathematics improved, it became more customary to give bearings in units of “Degrees” from Geographic North. In the 1920′s, it became an accepted practice to indicate direction, called HEADING or BEARING, by a single number (0 to 360) representing degrees of a circle as measured clockwise from True North. The development of the compass instrument itself represents quite an achievement, however the actual use of this instrument is more of an art form. The Compass is not by any means a complex instrument. Anyone from 9 to 90 should be able to learn compass operation with just some practice and understanding a few simple principles.
Posted on: Sun, 23 Jun 2013 06:06:51 +0000
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